Boost C++ Libraries: Ticket #3286: assert()-like functionality in release mode

Steven Watanabe — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 01:03:32 GMT

The expansion of assert is controlled by the macro NDEBUG independently of optimization options. Because of the way assert is designed, it is always a bug if an assertion fails. This is due to more than just the fact that assertions can be disabled. It is also due to the fact that a failed assertion crashes the program. In addition, proper handling of errors that are not bugs is much more complex than assert is capable of handling.

Fri, 24 Jul 2009 09:58:45 GMT

Are you suggesting I just don't define NDEBUG? That's not an optimal solution, as leaving assert() enabled could give a performance hit, because it's usually expected to be gone in release mode. The app is supposed not to depend on assert expressions being evaluated, that's why there should be another construct that is not excluded (by default) in release mode.

I agree that it's certainly not suitable for all error handling. That doesn't mean there aren't a lot of situations where it would come in handy.

component changed; owner set

anonymous — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 09:42:07 GMT

owner set to No-Maintainer
component None → utility

olafvdspek@… — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 22:59:41 GMT

Somebody? I'm willing to work on this one myself if the feature would be accepted into Boost.

viboes — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 20:27:48 GMT

Send a post to the dev ML requiring interest in the feature.

status changed; resolution set

Andrey Semashev — Sat, 08 Jul 2017 20:48:28 GMT

status new → closed
resolution → fixed

There is the BOOST_VERIFY(x) macro, which is expands to x in release builds and BOOST_ASSERT(x) in debug. There is also BOOST_VERIFY_MSG. Note that these macros do not implement error handling in release builds.

If you want to do an actual error handling in release (e.g. abort in case of error) then asserts are not the right tool for this, IMO. Use exceptions or explicitly spell out the error handling behavior.